


One day closer

by Akh111



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2016-01-27
Packaged: 2018-04-25 08:55:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 18,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4954225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akh111/pseuds/Akh111
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for your great comments! I'm sorry it's taking so long in between updates!</p></blockquote>





	1. New life

She woke up confused, squinting her eyes at the penetrating light that managed to enter her room through the windows. She felt her head pounding, a headache that was a consequence of the beers she drank the night before.

“What the fuck?” she covered her eyes and mumbled, still groggy, and feeling a fire down her dry throat. “Shit.” She groaned and turned on her side, smiling a little at the fresh and clean scent of her new bed sheets, and thankful for the cool underside of her pillows.

She fell asleep again as soon as she covered her face with the spare pillow and turned on her side away from the blinding sun. She could feel her limbs enjoying the hours of extra rest after completing her successful period of training to become part of the armed forces of what was left of America.

 

\--

 

She had always dreamed of being a solid source of support for her family and friends, but since they left her she adjusted her goals to become a solid source of support for what was left of her country. She had trained hard to overcome the physical and mental barriers that stopped her from becoming the best soldier she could be. She had to forget her morals in many cases, using force to stop the enemy, and forget the pain of a family that she lost to overcome the hard road ahead of her.

She became the best student, the fastest runner, the strongest competitor and the smartest strategist. She spent days analyzing, studying and developing strategies to make her way through training and onto the real life that was waiting for her out of the training facilities. She learned to follow orders, something she found hard given that she was one used to lead, and to lower her head and do as told in order to reach a goal during some of the drills.

She was exhausted, mentally and physically, after the first week. She needed to find a way to stop herself from thinking too much, from going crazy, and decided to find something to distract herself every night before going to sleep. Since the moment she stepped into the bar where all the personnel used to spend quite a lot of time, and saw the great selection of liquor, she made herself a promise to go there at least three times a week, no matter how tired she was.

 She managed to balance her training, exhaustion, and a growing list of people she made out with after her shifts in the vigilance room when she went to the bar. She had found shelter in some of the most beautiful agents and soldiers that congregated in the bar, sometimes one on one and sometimes with more than one at once, depending on her mood and levels of frustration.

She didn’t allow herself to get attached to any of her lady friends, she always drew the line since the first conversation: a name, a place, and a completely crude ‘I just want you for tonight’ to finish their short exchange before jumping to the intimate side of her interests. An orgasm or two afterwards she would pick her clothes and stuff and head out to her small bunk bed in the big room she shared with the other students and cadets that were making their way through training and fast asleep when she went to bed.

Her walls were high and on top of it was an electrified barrier that stopped anyone from getting near her heart. Watching her parents leave her to go to battle, followed by her friends dying of despair and hopelessness at their situation made her build them brick by brick, making sure to put enough warnings on them to make sure no one would get caught up with her.

 

\--

 

She woke up feeling thirsty, tired, and with a headache. Last night was wild, she spent it celebrating the finalization of her training and being assigned to a new apartment that even though was really small, it had everything she could need in it.

She fell asleep with a smile on her face because she finally achieved something, succeeded in her efforts to excel. She rolled over and over again in her new bed sheets that she had earned with literal tears and blood, she enjoyed the view through the window of the city lights surrounding her and the base where she would spend most of her life working at. Hopefully.

She got up from the bed, feeling the new rug under her feet, and walked to the bathroom. She stood in front of the mirror, taking in her sleepy and tired appearance, smiling at herself and the bags under her eyes, the dark circles around them, and the faint mark of lipstick on her neck from the woman that had been lucky enough to make out with her during a tiring dancing night at the bar.

She washed her face and brushed her teeth before wandering into the kitchen and finding a basket full of some presents the armed forces gave to every new member in full: a bottle of wine, some cheese of the special reserves they imported from the much calmer European countries, some chocolate and a hoodie with the classic USA letters in the front. She smiled and prepared herself a cup of coffee after investigating what she had in the cabinets and small bar fridge.

 

**_War takes another toll on us: Chicago is down_ **

**_Rebels look to make another move to hurt America: Chicago is taken_ **

**_Another one bites the dust and America is weaker_ **

**_Chicago is down, hope of winning the war is a utopia_ **

 

She read the principal news sources on her tablet, a device issued to every member of the military corps loaded with the principal sources of information and with software that allowed them to be on the loop with the newest details of intelligence each one could need. For the device to work you needed a four digit code, a scan of the officer’s face and eye, and their left thumb’s fingerprint.

“Well, shit.” She shook her head and sipped her coffee. “This is gonna be a busy week.” She sighed and finished her drink, washed the mug, and stripped of her clothes. She felt free and relaxed, she didn’t feel the need to hide or be reserved and formal like when she was out, no: this was her apartment, her haven, and she was going to feel free and at home in there, and in her own skin.

“Time for fun.” She smiled and started the shower before she jumped in, letting the water wash over her body, down her shoulders, washing every scar and tear away from her with the soft fragrant soap.

She dried herself off with a soft white towel and walked back to her room. She dropped her towel to the floor and walked to her small closet where she found five sets of military clothes, including fatigue pants and white cotton v-neck shirts, as well as some cargo pants and other work clothes for her different rotations in the base. She picked a shirt, a pair of dark navy blue cargo pants and threw them on the bed.

“Time to go to business.” She smiled to herself as she put on her underwear and got dressed. She fixed her hair, applied some mascara and eyeliner, something no one ever complained about in the base, and grabbed her shoes and jacket. “It’s fucking cold.” She groaned when she opened the door and was greeted by a sold wind that penetrated her body and bones.


	2. New surprises

“Good morning, Krieger.” One of her fellow soldiers that just got promoted said.

“Morning, Dirk.” She smiled at him and started making the short ten minute walk to the base.

“Cold day to be our first, no?” he said as he fell into rhythm with her pace.

“And the news are even worse.” She nodded. “It’s gonna be a busy day.”

“Chicago sucks.” He shook his head. “I can’t believe we lost it so soon.”

“Well, our lines are getting deteriorated, Dirk. Our soldiers can’t hold on forever.”

“I know that, but let’s be real, five months since they fell into this war is nothing.” He insisted and Ali decided to drop it before they started an argument, and she didn’t know if they were going to be assigned together.

“Why are you always so serious, Ali?” he asked after a few minutes in silence. They could see the base in front of them and Ali wished she could just run and leave him behind.

“I don’t know, that’s how I am.” She responded lamely and he chuckled, disappointed in her response.

“Good morning, soldiers.” A tall and strong officer greeted them at the main gate. “You know the protocol.” He said pointing to a small machine where they had to identify themselves by a fingerprint. “Have a good day.” He said when both completed the process and opened the gate for them.

“Well, you’re stuck with me for a while longer. We have to go see what assignments we’re gonna get.” Dirk looked at her with a teasing smile and a bump on her shoulders.

“I’ll survive, I think.” She playfully responded and walked with him through the long underground corridors that let them to the office of their officer in charge. With the fragile state of the nation, the military ranks where the last thing on anyone’s mind, and there were only three types of them: four leaders, soldiers and cadets. In the government there were five leaders, followed by the military and armed forces.

“Krieger, Jennings, sit here while we wait for the others.” A tall black man with a scar on his cheek told them. Ali recognized him as one of the five leaders of the government, and was surprised when he called her by her name.

“Of course.” Dirk smiled and sat on a chair in the large conference room that started to fill with at least twenty other new soldiers. “I guess they asked us to come in at different times.” He whispered to Ali, who simply nodded and saw how each chair was taken by the soldiers that went through training with her.

“We’re all here now.” The man said. “My name is Clark Kenton, any joke regarding superman is forbidden from now on, as well as any other smartass comment you can come up with referring to me or my name. I’m a government leader, as you all know, and I’m here to take five of you into an important mission that requires certain standards in different fields such as technological knowledge, athleticism, strategic knowledge and processing of situations under high pressure, easiness to follow orders, and easiness and capability to learn about weapons and ammunition in a reduced amount of time.”

Everyone nodded and he handed them a test that would assess some of the areas he had mentioned. They read it in silence until he spoke again.

“You will be selected by me, and this won’t be the only assessment we’ll make. If you lie in one test, I will know it and you will be discharged from the armed forces and thrown into the fields to harvest our food.” He said with a serious face. “You have five minutes to complete this task, and then we’ll move on to the next one.”

Ali cursed herself at that. Of course she would be hangover the day of her surprise audition for a new important job. She shook her head and focused on the random questions she had on her test, almost chuckling at some of the answers and some of the questions.

“Time is up, soldiers.” Kenton said. “Give me your tests and walk out onto the training grounds. I’ll be there in a minute.” He said and everyone did as told and in silence. “This test consists on something like a beep test that many of you have taken or at least heard of, only that our version is a little extreme and with obstacles.” He smirked at this and pointed at the field in front of them, where their normal military training ground had been substituted by an extreme obstacle course with lots of mud, barbwire and other hard tasks were ahead. “You will be tested individually, based on your previous records, and then your performance, average time, and efficiency will be compared to the others.

While he explained all that, a group of soldiers came out of the base and started covering them with wires and measuring devices in the shape and size of a coin that they put on their chests, foreheads and legs. They all stood in a perfect line next to each other waiting for the signal to go ahead that they promptly received.

Ali reacted fast and her feet started moving blindly and with extreme agility over the obstacles, using her speed and flexibility when she needed them. She jumped high, ran fast, slid herself through the mud, felt her lungs burning and her limbs asking her for a stop, but she didn’t give up and ended after three other guys that looked at her with cocky smirks.

“Follow me.” Kenton said as soon as the last soldier completed the circuit, almost a whole minute after Ali finished it. They were all covered in dirt, tired and out of breath, and the man was leading them directly to the gym. “You all will go here and follow these routines designed especially for you, to tire you mentally and physically.” He explained and handed them a sheet of paper with their name and a list of work outs to follow. Ali felt her head pounding, but the need to keep succeeding kept her going.


	3. Success

“Damn.” Dirk groaned and Ali did the same when she looked at hers: lifting, treadmill, squats, planks, sit ups, pushups and sit ups.

“You have to finish each and every single one of them to advance. The point of this test is to see how much your body can perform in extreme circumstances of exhaustion and temperature.” He said with an evil grin as he ordered for the A/C to be turned off. “Ladies and gentlemen, you may start now.” He said and moved to the side, noticing how everyone took off as many clothes as they could without disrespecting the others’ visual space.

Ali took off her jacket and threw it to the side and was left in her shirt and pants. She started the exercises and soon she felt the unbearable heat of a gym full of twenty people sweating and working out, and shook her head before taking of her shirt and be left in sports bra and her pants and boots.

“Fucking hell.” Daniel, a tall blond groaned as he finished an excruciating round of sit ups. He was in just his boots and pants, and Ali could see his sweaty torso glistening under the dim lights.

“Just a little longer, Dan.” She encouraged him and continued her walk to the other side of the room to do her pushups.

“What’s your name, soldier?” Kenton asked her.

“Krieger, sir.” She responded without stopping.

“Krieger, are you tired?”

“I’m exhausted, sir.” She responded honestly but kept going. She felt her body covered in sweat that drenched her pants, her feet were hot and she felt trapped in her clothes.

“Keep going, then.” He chuckled at her bluntness and continued walking around, asking everyone the same questions. “Two minutes!” he yelled loudly and a general groan was heard. “If you don’t finish the required amount of repetitions, you will get your shit and get out of here.” He said and saw a couple of girls in the corner pick up their pace in the thread mill.

“Time’s up! Follow me, everyone.” He said and two lanky guys that looked worried looked at each other, confused and relieved. “Each one will have to disarm this gun, put it back together again, and deactivate this bomb under three minutes.” He said and pointed at small work stations located in an empty warehouse next to the gym. “The trick is…”

“Wasn’t that tricky enough?” Dirk mumbled under his breath and a few of them smiled a little.

“… that not all work stations have the same implements. You all will have to work together to deactivate the bombs on time.” He said and everyone took their spots. “Go!” he yelled loudly and everyone started with the gun first. Ali managed to complete the task as quick as she could before she focused on a complicated structure that protected her bomb. She looked around and noticed how one of her tools could help her but the other three not so much.

“Focus, Ali.” She repeated as her mantra, trying to cut through the mess of wire and other materials that protected the explosives.

“Krieger, pliers!” one of the others yelled.

“Negative!” she shook her head. “Hank, cutter!”

“Catch it!” he said and threw it at her. After that some more exchanges took place before they heard a loud siren indicating the end of their task. Only seven people managed to complete it, and Ali was the last of them.

“Good job, soldiers. Go back home and wait to be contacted in the next few hours by me; if you don’t, then come back tomorrow at 07:00 am and wait for your assignment.” Kenton said and exited the room while the assistants that had put the trackers on the soldiers took them off and packed them in small boxes with numbers and code names.

 

\--

 

“Krieger, pack your things for tomorrow, you’re leaving with me to DC at three in the morning. Don’t be late.” Kenton told her as soon as she opened her door. He left before she could even say a word and went back inside.

“Well, now what?” she sighed and looked around her and at her small apartment. She decided to pack the chocolate and what little clothes she had and enjoy a glass of wine and a piece of cheese before showering again and getting in bed for a power nap.

 

\--

 

“Moving again.” She groaned and put on her black beanie, gloves, thick jacket and boots and walked out towards the base. She packed her duffel with her clothes, the hoodie she had received less than 24 hours before, the chocolate, and the last picture she kept of her parents. She felt the cold winter wind cutting through her as she walked towards the base in the dark night.

“Krieger.” Kenton said when he saw her at the gate. “Let her in.” he said and the officer immediately opened the gate and allowed her inside. “Come with me.” He said and started walking to a heliport in the back of the base; she saw Daniel, Andrea, Dirk and another girl she couldn’t remember the name of sitting in a huge helicopter.

“Hey there.” They all said at the same time and she smiled and sat next to Andrea.

“Cold night. I just want to curl up in bed.” She whispered and Ali nodded enthusiastically. She could barely feel her toes, and her face was completely numb.

“Soldiers, it’ll be a short ride.” Kenton said and sat next to their pilot. Soon they were flying across New York and entering a heavily watched and highly militarized DC. When they touched down Kenton led them inside another underground base and walked them through long and badly lit corridors towards a private conference room. “Wait here.” He said and let them into the room that smelled like old cigarettes and coffee.

“We came all the way here to wait?” Daniel rolled his eyes. “At least leave us waiting in a bed or something, I’m freezing.” He chuckled and everyone agreed.

“Good almost morning, ladies and gentlemen.” A woman with black long sleeved v-neck shirt, black cargo pants and boots said. “I’m Ashlyn Harris and I’m one of the leaders of our armed forces.” She started and they all nodded; Ali remember seeing her face in one of the reports she had read during training and how she was impressed that she was a year younger than her and already one of the leaders of what was left of the country, being the youngest in those positions of power by far. “You have been pre-selected to be part of a new elite force, if you want to call it like that, that has a complicated mission ahead.” Ashlyn started.

“Excuse me, ma’am… did you say ‘pre-selected’?” Dirk asked and she nodded.

“Call me Ashlyn or Harris, don’t be so formal with me. We don't work like that and I don't like it either.” She shook her head. “And yes, you have been brought here to be trained in specific areas that we need you to develop before we can say you are ideal for sure for our plans.” She explained looking directly into their eyes. “I will personally train each one of you in the category where you got the lowest qualification, and you’ll be coached by other highly qualified members of our staff during the rest of the time.” she said and they all nodded. Ali felt something when Ashlyn looked at her, but quickly dismissed it as admiration for the young leader of her nation. 


	4. Are you drunk?

“This is like going back to school.” Daniel chuckled and Ashlyn nodded with a smile.

“Pretty much. Anyway, your training starts right now, my team is waiting for you to take you down to the rooms you’ll share and then you’ll come back and meet me.” She said and pointed at the door where five strong soldiers were waiting. “Now hurry up to get this party started.” She winked and Ali swore she felt Ashlyn's eyes lingering on her for a moment longer.

 

\--

 

“You will get a small room for yourselves, each one has a small bathroom with a toilet, a shower, a mirror, and a small closet.” One of the soldiers said as he guided them through long corridors with plenty of details Ali would love to observe closely, since it was mostly pipes, lights, alarm systems and other communication networks. “Krieger, you’re here.” He said and pointed at the last door in a small corridor with three other doors. “Unpack your stuff and be out in a minute.”

“Jennings, here.” Another soldier pointed at the door next to Ali. “Carragher, here.” The next door. “And Gonzalez here. You have a minute to unpack and get out.” He said and walked to the main corridor to give them a little time and space. They all looked at each other and entered their rooms, quickly dropped their belongings in the improvised room that only had a cot, and got out before the time was up. “Let’s go, Harris is waiting.”

 

\--

 

“Took y’all long enough.” Ashlyn said when she saw the group walking toward her. She was standing in the middle of a large room with the best light systems Ali saw since she stepped into the underground compound.

“Sorry, we got caught up in the elevator. Lots of wounded coming from Chicago.” One of the soldiers said.

“Yeah, I heard we’ll receive the wounded that aren’t all that bad so we can train them and throw them back out there.” She shook her head. “I’ll take it from here guys, you can wait outside.”

“Yes, ma’am.” One of them replied and she chuckled.

“Okay, we’ll get started here. You are still in training, you’re not part of my team yet.” She said and motioned for them to follow her to a corner of the room where some charts and other stuff was placed on a desk. “This is a training room for most of our workouts, and drills, before we start practicing upstairs. I will coach you, if you want to call it that, through your weakest points, some need some combat lessons, others need a bit of strategy, others need some more athletic capabilities. The guys out there will work with the rest through drills designed to push you and expose your weaknesses.”

“So, we’re here for more training?” Dirk said and Ashlyn nodded.

“Let me put it this way. There’s a really important mission, we need the best qualified soldiers and agents we have available, and you are applying for a job here.” She winked. “Now, let’s do something fun since you’re all cold and tired.” She smirked devilishly and Andrea looked nervous. Take off your jackets, shoes and socks, and put them there.” She pointed at the other corner. “Do it quick.”

“We’re gonna freeze.” Dirk mumbled as he took off his coat.

“If you don’t like it, the door is always open, Jennings.” Ashlyn said from behind them. “Now hurry up and get your asses here.” She said firmly and holding a small box in her hands. “Make a line in front of me, at an arm’s length from each other.” She instructed them.

“What’s that?” Andrea asked and pointed at the small box of 7x7 inches Ashlyn held in her hands.

“These are censors I will use when you’re training with me.” She said and walked to Dirk, the first in the line. “They will tell me everything I need to know about your performances and bodies.” She took a small coin shaped censor and put it on his chest, right above his heart. “With this I will see how good you all tolerate and improve the situations I’ll put you through.” She said as she repeated the process and placed it on Andrea’s chest.

“Isn’t that what we did back in the base?” Ali said and suddenly felt nervous when Ashlyn looked at her.

“Yes, and no. Those analysis were based on your previous training, now the real fun begins.” She winked at her as she placed the censor on Ali’s chest. “Here you will be pushed, mentally and physically, to see your limits. You will not have a balanced diet; you will depend on whatever I feel you’ll need for our drills. As we move along this process, your diets will be switched and reduced towards the end and then you will be put through a strong program to get you back to a 100% before the final selection.” She explained and finished with the coins. She took her tablet from the desk and typed a code, and just a second later they heard a beep and felt a small vibration coming from the censors.

“That felt weird and almost gave me a heart attack.” Andrea joked and everyone laughed, even Ashlyn.

“Yeah I’m sorry; I should’ve warned you.” She smiled. “Anyway, let’s get started. I’ll need you to stretch first and then walk to that wall, then walk faster, then jog, then run, and then go as fast as you can.” She said and focused on the data she was receiving from the censors. “Krieger, come here.” She said without looking up and walking towards the desk.

“Yes…” she said hesitantly and approached her slowly.

“Are you drunk?” Ashlyn asked her softly, looking directly at her.

“Me? No.” she shook her head.

“Your lectures say otherwise.” She said firmly and Ali felt a pang of shame and embarrassment in her stomach.

“I’m not drunk _today_.” She offered lamely. “I drank quite a bit after I got my results, but yesterday I didn’t.”

“You passed the tests while being drunk?” she asked with a slight frown and Ali shivered.

“I guess.” She shrugged and Ashlyn nodded before looking down at her tablet again.

“Can you go through these drills?” she asked without looking up and while she looked for a particular piece of information through her data.

“Yes, absolutely.”

“You won’t sleep or rest for another 15 hours.”

“I can go through the day, I’m sure.” Ali nodded and Ashlyn looked up at her again.

“Go get in line.” She ordered her and Ali did as told.

“Everything alright?” Andrea asked her.

“Yeah.” Ali nodded and looked down, unable to look at Ashlyn while she stared at her with a frustrated frown.

“Everyone ready. You’ll repeat this for the next hour and a half in the exact order I gave you.” She said and started a chronometer. “Go.” They all started walking and Ashlyn sat at the desk and kept a close eye on the lectures she was receiving.


	5. Discovery

****

“Time’s up!” she yelled after everyone completed their last lap. “Good, follow me.” She said and walked to the side door on the room that led to a big gym with all types of equipment for a professional training environment. “These were taking from our local football team after the war started so you can say you’re training with what spoiled brats played to pay.” She winked and pointed at the logo on one of the machines. “Pick a tread mill.” She instructed the tired group who walked towards it with exhaustion written on their faces. “Start with a slow pace, just walking.” She said and went to sit on one of the benches. “What are you waiting for?” she chuckled and they all started moving.

“I can’t feel my legs.” Andrea breathed after twenty minutes.

“Stop.” Ashlyn told her and walked towards her, stopping the machine. “Go sit on that bench over there.” She pointed at one against the wall and Andrea gingerly made her way. “How are you feeling?” Ashlyn asked her, reading through her data.

“I’m just tired. I can’t feel my legs.” She said and lifted her shirt to wipe the sweat off her forehead.

“Your lectures are fine, we’ll work on resistance and stamina. Take five minutes and go back to the tread mill.” Ashlyn nodded at her and turned to the group. “We’ll go faster now, people. Light jog, now!” she instructed them and received a series of groans that made her laugh. “Come on, don’t whine or we’ll go directly to running.”

“Don’t even think about it.” Daniel playfully complained and Ashlyn laughed. Ali noticed a dimple on her left cheek and the marks around her eyes of smiling a lot.

“What, Krieger? Need a breather?” she asked her playfully and walked towards her.

“No, I don’t.” she responded with a smile and Ashlyn smirked at her. “Yet.”

“Good, then keep going and don’t get too distracted.” She leaned to fake whisper at her and Ali chuckled and looked down, thankful for her face being so sweaty and flushed to hide the embarrassed blush that would have appeared for sure.

“Andrea, get back to work now.” Ashlyn said as she checked her lectures again. “Don’t think about the time, focus on anything else.”

“Okay.” She nodded and went back to work. After almost thirty minutes, long groans of frustration and a moment of amused satisfaction for Ashlyn, she made one last check of the lectures.

“Stop now, soldiers.” She smiled when they all sighed and collapsed on the floor, rubbing their feet and legs and wiping their sweat with their sleeves. “Tired?” she asked playfully and they all looked at her annoyed. “Time for a little breather now, drink some water, cool down.” She said and sat on a bench next to were Andrea was laying on the floor.

“What are we going to do next?” Daniel asked through heavy breaths.

“Teach you how to breath properly could be a good start.” Ashlyn chuckled. “Slow and steady, don’t hyperventilate. We haven’t gone through out medical training yet.” She winked and Ali and Andrea giggled; Dirk looked at them amused and chuckled. “What’s so funny, Dirk?”

“Nothing, nothing at all.” He said trying to hold his smirk under her gaze.

“Okay, I’ll pretend I believe you.” Ashlyn chuckled amused. “If you’re ready we can move onto our next-”

“We’re not ready.” Daniel groaned and moved to lay on his stomach on the floor.

“Training, Daniel. Not vacations.” She patted him on the back and started walking. “Follow me.” She guided them through the compound to a large dining hall with rock and concrete walls, many lamps that only managed to give a dim light to the room, and lots of tables and benches filling the space.

“Time for food!” Dirk smiled widely at Ali, who nodded eagerly.

“This is our dinning hall and were pretty much everyone comes for news and waiting for a mission’s results.” She said and pointed at a big screen in the further wall. “We usually have the President with us in here.” She said and guided them to a table nearer the screen. “Wait here.” She said and walked behind a door and into something Ali assumed was the kitchen. She saw Ashlyn through a small window smiling to a young brunette and winking at her, making the other woman blush.

“I hope we get to eat something, I’m exhausted.” Daniel said and moved to sit next to Ali on one of the tables, blocking her view of Ashlyn.

“Me too, those workouts are useless.” Dirk whined.

“They’re to test our resistance, no?” Andrea yawned and sat on the other side of Ali. “I need a bed.”

“With or without Harris in it?” dirk smirked at her and Ali looked at her with an amused and surprised face.

“If she was in it I wouldn’t complain... but then I would need another nap.” Andrea cheekily responded and Ali chuckled and shook her head. “What, you don’t agree, Ali?”

“Ali likes dudes, probably.” Daniel winked at her. “You can have Harris for yourself.”

“I’ll gladly take her, then.” She wagged her brows. “Unless little Dirk wants her.”

“She’s hot, but she’s totally flirting with that chick over there so… I’ll pass.” He said pointing at the scene unfolding in the kitchen, where Ashlyn was leaning on her back against a counter while the woman listened to whatever she was telling her with a smile.

“Good boy.” Andrea joked and lied down on the table. “Man I need a nap.”

“We all do. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” Daniel nodded. “There she comes.” He said and Andrea sat up.

“I’m sorry guys, I was negotiating your breakfast.” Ashlyn said and stood in front of them for a moment while she checked a message on her tablet.

“Oh you’re a hard worker.” Andrea teasingly responded, all with a hint of flirtation that wasn’t missed by Ashlyn.

“You should see me actually working hard.” She countered without looking up, but they all heard the smirk on her words.

“Oh I would love to see it.” Andrea responded and Ali smiled awkwardly and looked down.

“Maybe we could do something about that.” Ashlyn responded, finally looking up at her with a smirk that gave life to her dimple. “Go pick a plate and come back here quick. Showtime is about to start.” She winked at Andrea and walked to the far side of the room where Kenton was standing already.

“I think you’ll have your nap and Harris before the end of the day.” Dirk chuckled as they walked towards the door Ashlyn had crossed moments before.

“I hope so.” Andrea responded and reached for the plate the woman offered her. “Thanks.” She smiled and walked back to the table followed by the others.

“Oatmeal and a toast… I miss the base already.” Daniel groaned and sat at the table.

“Whiny baby.” Dirk chuckled and sat next to him and Ali.

“Eat fast, kiddos.” Ashlyn said as she approached them and sat next to Ali. “Enjoy it.” She smiled and pointed at the plate in front of Ali.

“You’re not eating?” she lamely asked.

“I already ate something.” She winked and Andrea giggled. “What?” she smirked at her.

“Nothing, just that after seeing you flirt with that other girl…” she said with a smirk on her own that amused Ashlyn.

“You’ve seen nothing.” She winked flirtatiously and Andrea pursed her lips and hummed.

“I would like to see something, though.” She said nonchalantly and focused back on her food, leaving an amused Ashlyn without a reply.

“Your attention, please.” Kenton said from the front of the room, near the big screen.

“Hurry up with your food.”

“I’m done.” Daniel said and Ashlyn nodded and looked at the others.

“Ashlyn, come here please.” Kenton said and she walked towards him. “We have a new group of soldiers that will be trained by Ashlyn here in our facilities, as well as another group that will be guided by me through a different approach of their training. Out of those two groups we’ll pick the best candidates that will stay here with us while the others are sent back to their original bases.”

“What?” Dirk asked under his breath to his friends.

“The training of these two groups will be priority and every decision Kenton and I make regarding them and the training facilities will be respected by everyone.” Ashlyn said with authority and everyone nodded. “Some of you have already been part of this training and know that I’m not joking when I say we’ll put these guys through hell in the upcoming weeks, so I ask you all to respect them, their times off, and to not try to help them since you would be interfering with the program.”

“I’m worried now.” Daniel joked.

“To the new soldiers, learn to stay quiet when leaders of your government or armed forces are talking.” Ashlyn said with a stern look in their direction. “We may not have ranks, fancy uniforms, or medals, but we do have respect here and recognize the moments to be fun and when we should shut up.”

“Fuck.” Daniel groaned and blushed wildly under Ashlyn's gaze. Ali and Andrea smirked and Ali felt a pang of jealousy when Andrea winked at Ashlyn.

“That’s it for now, thank you for your attention.” Kenton said and the big group that had gathered around them vanished as fast as they had gotten there.

“Daniel, come with me.” Ashlyn said to him from the front. “The others should hurry up with breakfast and meet me and the guys in our training facilities in the tenth level.” She said and guided Daniel down a long corridor and around a corner.


	6. Chapter 6

“He’s so fucked.” Dirk chuckled and finished his food. “Let’s go or we’ll be in the same shit he just got himself into.” He patted Ali’s shoulder and helped Andrea on her feet before they started making their way down the corridors filled with people and to the elevators.

 

\--

 

“Okay, now the real fun begins.” Ashlyn said as she entered the room where the others were standing around with the instructors sitting on the other side of it, working on something that kept them busy. “Guys, are we ready?” she asked them and they nodded.

“Where’s Daniel?” Dirk asked.

“He’s no longer part of our program but he’ll stay in the base in case something happens to one of you.” Ashlyn explained with a dismissive tone. “Okay, so back to what concerns us: you’re gonna go through this obstacle course and will have to make it out alive.” She smirked.

“Alive?” Andrea asked with a frown.

“Yes, there are some surprises out there that you’ll have to keep your eyes open to identify.” She nodded amused by the look of terror in their faces. “We have some traps that will free a serum that stimulates the pain signals in your brain; it could be located in a specific region of your bodies through a dart and make you feel like you were shot, or like bombs that will make you feel like you’re in the worst day of your fucking lives.”

“And we have to see if there are any darts or traps on our way?” Andrea asked and Ashlyn nodded.

“This test will help me see how attentive to detail you are, how fast you can find a solution to a problem, how quick you are thinking of ways to avoid impending danger, and how you resist fear and pain.” She said and took a gun one of her men gave her. “You have your censors and I’ll read everything you feel and do, and just in case you’re curious to know if I’m joking…” she said and pointed the gun at one of the men standing next to her, pointing at his thigh and shooting the serum at him; he crumbled on his knees and started holding his upper leg, grimacing in pain. “This isn’t a joke.”

“Get ready.” One of the instructors yelled and they got in position. Ali felt her heart racing and threatening to leave her chest and her senses to become more focused and ready to take this new task and succeed. “Go!” he yelled and they started running.

“Let’s see how they do.” Ashlyn smirked and sat on a chair with her tablet in her hand. She looked at the data she was receiving, the adrenaline levels and the heart rates of the small group. She focused on Andrea’s data, and turned to look at her looking confused through an obstacle before a gas started coming off the ground.

“What the fuck?” Andrea groaned and covered her face while moving to the next challenging obstacle. She climbed up a wooden wall and skipped what looked like the darts Ashlyn had mentioned, earning a satisfied smile from Ashlyn.

“Fuck!” a loud groan made Ashlyn look at Ali, who had just found one of the darts that made her feel like she got shot on the shoulder while she crawled under one of the obstacles. “Shit.” She moaned in pain and Ashlyn was getting ready to go get her when she saw her start moving again.

“You okay there, Krieger?” she asked loudly and Ali ignored her and kept going, moving to the next wall she had to climb up, making gestures of pain but not giving up. “Damn, she’s tough.” Ashlyn nodded and sat back down, looking at her data and noticing how Ali’s heart was beating faster and how her adrenaline levels were raising. “Take it easy Krieger!” she yelled and smiled when she saw the hard stare Ali shot on her direction.

“I thought this was supposed to be – fucking hell!” Dirk yelled when a trap sent a heavy ball to his hand. “That’s not a simulation of pain!” he groaned loudly and fell hard on the ground.

“Don’t be a baby.” Ashlyn laughed and saw how Ali was almost done. “Get up, Dirk.” She said amused as he struggled to continue. “Krieger got shot and you just got a hit to the hand, come on!”

“She got a simulation, I didn’t.” he grumbled and kept going.

“Shit!” Andrea groaned as she stepped on a dart and stumbled against a wall that had a trap and another doze of the serum penetrated her body.

“You okay, Rodriguez?” Ashlyn asked without looking up from her tablet and Andrea’s lectures.

“Yeah, I think so.” She kept going for a few feet longer until she faced a large wall they needed to climb. “Or not.” She winced and Ali got there.

“You okay?”

“Yeah just… need a break.” Andrea exhaled and bent over. Ali looked at Ashlyn, who was staring at them and came up with an idea.

“Come on, I’ll help you.” She smiled and made her way to one of the obstacles, taking off the risky darts and the barbwire and dragging it to the wall. “We’ll climb together.” She said and helped her get on top of the wall; it was hard at first but since Andrea’s wounds weren’t on her arms she could still move well.

“What was that?” Ashlyn asked and approached them.

“I helped her.”

“You risked your life.” Ashlyn shook her head and ordered for the test to stop, leaving Dirk hanging off a rope with an annoyed groan. “You know that if this was real-”

“I would’ve been shot and my partner too, yes.” Ali nodded and reached to hold her shoulder, feeling how the pain was starting to fade away.

“If this was a mission you already risked your life, the mission, and the lives of the soldiers that could have been waiting for you to be ready for extraction.” Ashlyn said sternly.

“But what if it was Andrea who had the valuable information? We couldn’t sit and chat about our day while the bad guys chase after us.” Ali explained. “She needed to be saved.”

“What if that wasn’t the case?” Ashlyn asked her with a smirk and approaching her until she was a feet away from her. “What if she was your escort and you were the one with information valuable to the U.S.? would you still save her knowing your life in that moment was more important than hers?” she said and studied Ali’s face, her eyes and the quick flicker of emotions and thoughts that crossed her mind in that moment. “What do you have to say, Krieger?”

“I say… I-I would make the decision in that moment and depending on the circumstances.” She swallowed hard and looked into Ashlyn's eyes, getting lost in the hazel color that gave life to them.

“How can you answer something right and wrong at the same time?” Ashlyn wondered in a soft and amused whisper.

“She’s our little machine.” Andrea responded. “She was a wonder back at the base.” She winked at Ali and Ashlyn nodded.

“I can see why. Kenton was really surprised with her file and results.”

“And now you’re too?” Andrea asked with a challenging look that made Ashlyn smirk and walk to her, leaning to her ear.

“Maybe.” She whispered and pulled back with a wink. “Okay, that was it for now, people. Go back to your rooms and be ready for a call from me at any minute.” Ashlyn said and pointed at the door. “As soon as I call you you’ll have five minutes to make it here or you’ll be punished.” She said over her shoulder and left the room with the rest of her men.

“Oh thank God.” Dirk whined and stretched his arms over his head. “I need a shower and to get some sleep.” He said as they started walking towards the rooms the other soldiers showed them earlier.


	7. I want you to be smart

“Ali do you want to go grab something to eat?” Andrea asked her as soon as she opened the door to her room.

“Sure, just let me fix my hair.” She chuckled and went to the small bathroom to put her hair up in a tight bun. “Ready, let’s go.” She smiled and followed her out the bedroom wing and to the dining hall. They found Dirk sitting with Daniel and they went to grab some food and sat with them.

“Hey, stranger.” Andrea smiled and sat next to him. “I thought our hot instructor had terminated you.” She chuckled and he laughed.

“No, she just moved me to another program.” He winked.

“And I’m guessing you can’t tell us what it is all about.” Andrea winked and he zipped his lips, making her roll her eyes.

“Sorry.” He shrugged with a playful smile and soon they started talking about their training.

“Harris is enjoying her break.” Andrea pointed at the same door from before and Ali turned to see Ashlyn being dragged by the hand by the same cute brunette than earlier.

“Well, at least food is ready and served; I just hope they clean the counters afterwards.” Dirk wagged his brows and Daniel and Andrea groaned while he and Ali giggled.

“Gross.” Daniel shook his head and focused back on his eggs.

 

\--

 

“Krieger, come with me.” Ashlyn said as soon as Ali opened her room’s door.

“Okay.” Ali said and grabbed her jacket from her bed and ran to catch up with her. “I’m not in trouble, right?” she asked with a playful smile but Ashlyn caught the worried undertone.

“No, we’re just gonna continue with your training.” she winked.

“Shouldn’t we go get the others?”

“I told you I would coach each one of you through your weakest points to make you stronger.” She explained with a smile. “Now it’s your turn to work with me.”

“Andrea is going to be jealous.” She playfully said and Ashlyn chuckled and shook her head.

“We’re gonna go through some drills as soon as you’re a bit more advanced, right now we’ll cover the basics of weaponry.” She winked at Ali and guided her to a small room with no windows and bad lightning. “You’re gonna have to be focused and ready to handle many different types of weapons in different situations. You were one of the only people to complete the drill of deactivating a bomb during the tests Kenton directed, right?” she said and sat on a chair in the middle of the room and pointed at the one in front of her for Ali to do the same.

“Yes, I think only some of us completed it.” She nodded.

“You were the last one to complete it on time.” Ashlyn nodded. “Only seven managed to make it.”

“Wow.” Ali said surprised and mentally gave herself a pat on the back for her good job.

“You have some impressive results, Ali, and I was even more surprised because you said you drank quite a bit the night before.”

“Yeah, I’m embarrassed about it… I was celebrating my promotion, I had no idea the next day was going to be so busy.” She shook her head and looked down in shame.

“I’m not judging.” Ashlyn chuckled. “I just need you to know that I’m impressed by your capacities and I’m excited to see how you can do now… and also I need you to reassure me that you’ll be focused through this.”

“I will be; I am. 100%.” Ali nodded eagerly.

“I’m not saying you can’t go and have fun, or have a couple of drinks, but just that I need you to be careful and focused because this is important and we have a zero tolerance policy when it comes down to discipline.”

“I understand.” Ali nodded solemnly.

“If you want to have fun with some of the guys or you find a handsome soldier to talk to or have a couple of drinks you can do it; I’ll just warn you, our men here are wild and some can be real pigs… no disrespect to pigs, though.”

“Okay.” Ali nodded again with a small smile, biting her lip to stop herself from saying she was more interested in the female soldiers.

“Okay, then let’s focus on this.” She wagged her brows and walked to the corner of the room to pick a small shoe box and brought it to the table between them. “I’m not interested in you being able to put a gun together from a bunch of pieces with your eyes covered in less than a minute, I’m here to teach you how to work with bombs and explosives, how to create weapons that work and are made from anything available to you.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, I want you to be smart to think of a way to create a weapon or a bomb with not many resources available, for example this.” She said and put the contents of the box on the table. “We have a gun, a normal gun like the one you have, some explosives, and this cables. What would you do with them?” she asked her and left Ali to think of an answer.


	8. Resistance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your great comments! I'm sorry it's taking so long in between updates!

“Where were you?” Andrea asked when she saw Ali making her way down the corridor and to her room.

“I was in my private lessons with Harris.” Ali said with a playful wink.

“Oh, really now? How was it?” she asked with a knowing smirk and Ashlyn laughed.

“It was interesting, I learned a lot.” She shrugged.

“Oh, I bet.” She giggled. “Have a good night, Al.” she winked and walked to her room, leaving Ali confused.

“It’s like 5pm, Andrea.”

“Uh huh.” She simply replied and closed her door without looking at her.

“Whatever.” Ali shrugged and opened her eyes to find Ashlyn sitting on her cot. “Uh… hello?” she said simply and Ashlyn snapped out of her daze and turned to face her.

“Hello, again.” She chuckled.

“How did you get here so fast?” Ali asked amused and Ashlyn shook her head slowly.

“That’s a secret I’m going to keep.” She said amused. “Anyway, I’m here just to let you know that tomorrow you’ll have to get up at seven in the morning and be at the training center tomorrow at eight.”

“I know that, you mentioned it during training.” Ali frowned a little and stood awkwardly in front of her for a moment, looking anywhere but the woman sitting on her bed.

“Well, I just wanted to tell you that in case you were thinking of drinking or something.”

“I’m not a kid, Harris.” She said with a little annoyance.

“I know that.” She shrugged. “It’s just that I did my research and I heard you liked to have a good time with friends at your base’s common area.” She said with a knowing look.

“I… yes, but that never interfered with my training.”

“I know. We have a common area here, too, and there’s all kinds of alcohol and other stuff being passed around, so… be careful, Krieger.” She said with a playful smile and got on her feet.

“Do you come to all dorms and do this kind of welcome but be careful speech?” Ali asked with a playful tone but a little bite in her voice that made her cringe when she saw Ashlyn's smile fall a little.

“No, I actually… I just wanted to make sure you knew better than put this position in a risky situation.” She said with an all business tone and with all playfulness gone. “I’m sorry if I bothered you. Have a good night and I’ll see you tomorrow.” She said and left the room without another word.

“Shit.” Ali sighed and sat on her cot. “Wait, how did she get in here?” she frowned confused and got up from bed to walk back to the corridor and look around until she found Ashlyn walking down the stairs to the next level. She took off walking faster and caught a glimpse of blond hair entering a weight room. Ali walked faster and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Ashlyn taking off her long sleeved shirt to be in her black sports bra and cargo pants. "Damn it..." she whispered.

Ashlyn's left arm was covered in beautiful tattoos in black ink, and Ali could see her rib cage being covered in them too, only that the colors that gave life to them was simply beautiful in her eyes. Ali took a moment to appreciate her muscles, the toned abs and arms, how her shoulders looked like when she flexed, and how the muscles on her back came alive when she moved up to hold onto a metal bar on the ceiling and started working out.

“What are you doing here?” a voice came from the other side of the room and Ali froze, thinking she could’ve gotten caught. “I thought you were going to meet me in my room later today.” The same soft and raspy voice said and Ali found the same brunette from earlier walking towards Ashlyn.

“I needed to blow off some steam.” She responded without pausing in her workout. “I’ll be there in an hour.”

“Okay, we’ll shower together then.” The woman responded flirtatiously and Ashlyn simply nodded.

“Sure.”

“I can’t wait to wash all the sweat off you.” She said and sat on a bench right in front of Ashlyn, getting a full view of her torso, her abs, and her face. “It’s been a while.”

“I went to your room just last night.” Ashlyn said in disbelief and Ali’s eyes went wide. “I had to leave when the new kiddos got here, so it’s been like twelve hours.” She said and Ali shook her head and left.

 

She felt a pang of jealousy knowing that Ashlyn had been with a woman just hours before she had met her. Minutes before that.

 

\--

 

“Good morning.” Ashlyn responded simply when she entered the training room. “We’ll work on your resistance today, people. Take off your shoes, jackets, shirts and anything that isn’t pants or a shirt and stand with your fronts against the wall.” She said and they rapidly did as told; Ali noticed how Ashlyn avoided looking at her general direction since she entered the room.

“Today’s workout will show us very little about your resistance, it will work more for you all to realize your own limits.” One of Ashlyn's men said while she walked towards them and placed another coin shaped tracker on the back of their necks. Ali swore she felt Ashlyn's fingertips gently grazing her skin but she shook her head and focused back on training.

“What you’re going to do now is simple. I need you all to stand on those small platforms for as long as you can.” She said and pointed at small squares of 1x2 feet about three feet over the ground. “You can use both of your feet, just one, your tiptoes, your heels, anything; but I need you to stay on those platforms.

“Where’s the trick?” Dirk asked.

“The trick is: I don’t want you to pass out, fall down, or get injured.” Ashlyn said. “You won’t eat, you won’t drink, you’ll have cold moments and others will be too hot, and you’ll have to endure that and know your limits." she said with a smirk and that's when they realized that the fun was beginning, but they were the ones providing it.


	9. Run

“Two hours in, how are you guys feeling?” Ashlyn asked with a smirk as she lifted her eyes and saw their tired expressions.

“We would be better if you didn’t remind us of the time every ten minutes.” Andrea responded.

“Someone’s getting tired.” Ashlyn chuckled. “Too bad, things are about to get interesting.” She smirked again and Ali looked at her, admiring her dimple.

“What are you gonna do?” Dirk frowned.

“Lower the temperature.” She winked and they started feeling the drop in the temperature as she looked down at her tablet. “We’re around 30°F right now.” She said and put on her heavy coat over the long sleeved black shirt she was wearing.

“Oh, fuck.” Ali groaned and started rubbing her hands against her thighs.

“You okay, Krieger.” Ashlyn asked without looking away from her tablet.

“I’m just cold, clearly.”

“Normal reaction to the situation you’re in.” Ashlyn said dismissively. “Andrea, how about you? Your lectures are telling me you’re close to giving up.”

“It’s too cold.” She said and Ashlyn saw her shiver.

“Try to resist at least a few moments longer, okay? Think about something else.” Ashlyn said looking at her, making Ali feel a pang of jealousy.

“You’re not gonna ask how I feel?” Dirk said with a playful smile. “Or is it just a courtesy with the ladies?”

“Well, if you had let me finish asking Andrea how she’s feeling, then I would’ve asked you. How are you?” Ashlyn said and walked towards him.

“I’m all good.” He said with a cocky smirk.

“And why is that?” Ashlyn asked amused.

“Because I grew up in Alaska.” He shrugged nonchalantly. “My brothers and I would go out of the house to swim in a lake right out of town. I’m used to the freezing cold.” He said proudly.

“Good to know, let’s just wait and see if you’re gonna keep that smirk when temperature goes up in a little while.” She chuckled.

“Bring it on!” he said arrogantly flexing his biceps and making everyone laugh.

“Okay, big boy. I gotta go take care of some business but you’re under this man’s supervision. I’ll be back in a little while to see how well you do.” She said and walked out of the room leaving a smiling soldier behind, looking devilishly at the temperature control panel.

 

\--

 

“Okay, it’s clear to me you guys have been sweating quite a bit after five hours now.” Ashlyn said as she entered the room and was hit with the image of the sweaty soldiers in front of her and a strong body odor smell filling the room. “How did they behave?” she asked and checked their lectures.

“We’re dying here, boss.” Andrea whined and stood up on her left foot, trying to keep her balance.

“Too cold?” Ashlyn laughed when she saw they were at almost 15°F.

“We’re gonna get sick.” Dirk stated and Ashlyn laughed.

“You better not, training won’t stop just because you guys got sick.” She shook her head. “Krieger, how are you feeling?” she said with a worried frown when she noticed how silent she was and how tightly she was holding her arms with her hands, trying to contain her shivers. “Krieger?”

“Cold.” She responded with a weak voice.

“Okay, that’s it for you.” Ashlyn shook her head and made a signal for them all to come down. “Go to your rooms, get a shower, I’ll send you some food, and get in bed.” She said and everyone groaned and sat for a little while on the floor, trying to rest their exhausted legs and minds.

 

\--

 

“Just a moment.” Ali mumbled as she wrapped a towel around her wet body. She had just taken a shower, enjoying the way the hot water felt against her cold and numb skin, leaving hot trails and red marks all over her shivering body. “I’m sorry, I was in the shower.” She said as she opened the door and found Ashlyn holding a tray with some food in it.

“Can I come in?” she asked and Ali nodded and took a step to the side. Ashlyn entered and put the food on the small dresser in the room. “I just wanted to check on you… your lectures weren’t really good.” She said softly, looking anywhere but at Ali.

“I’m feeling better now, I think.” Ali said simply. “The hot shower helped.”

“I brought you some food.” Ashlyn nodded and pointed at the tray. “There’s some soup and a sandwich… I prepared it for you… there’s also hot chocolate and some salad.” She shrugged. “I’m gonna let you get dressed and take some rest.” She shook her head, almost as if she was embarrassed by her words, and walked to the door, only to be stopped by a hand on her stomach.

“I’m sorry about yesterday. I was rude when you were concerned and doing your job.” Ali said softly, not moving her hand from Ashlyn's abs, and enjoying the heat that radiated from her body. She felt a spark light up in her stomach when Ashlyn looked into her eyes, and she swallowed hard when she remembered she was naked in front of her, only a towel covering her from Ashlyn's soft hazel eyes.

“I overstepped a line; I’m the one that should be apologizing.” She shook her head but didn’t move away from Ali’s touch. “I just wanted to… be friendly, I guess.” She chuckled and looked down embarrassed, feeling the way her cheeks turned pink and hot.

“Friendly?” Ali smiled a little.

“Yeah, I mean… I just... I’m sorry.” She mumbled lamely with a charming smile.

“It’s okay. You were _friendly_ and I was bitchy.” She shrugged and removed her hand from Ashlyn's body.

“Okay, let’s say we’re even, then.” Ashlyn smiled a little and winked at her. “Enjoy your dinner and if you’re cold or need some more blankets there’s a laundry room a level below; tell them Harris authorized you.”

“I will, thank you Ashlyn.” Ali smiled gently and Ashlyn looked into her eyes with a shy smile of her own.

“You’re welcome, Ali.”

 

\--

 

“Damn, I had a fucking awful night.” Dirk whined. “I can’t believe Harris is gonna make us train after that shit she pulled on us yesterday.”

“I got to my room, showered and went to bed without even touching my damn soup. I was exhausted.” Andrea agreed and devoured a cracker.

“What about you, Ali?” Dirk asked and sipped the hot coffee he was holding in his hand.

“I showered with hot water, I swore I was gonna get blisters all over my back.” She chuckled and looked down, remembering Ashlyn standing out of her room with the tray of food. “I ate my soup and went to sleep like a baby.” She decided to leave the sandwich part out of her details.

“I just hope we don’t have to do something heavy today.” Andrea said with a pout.

“Krieger, can I talk to you.” Ashlyn said after a moment when she approached the group.

“Sure.” Ali got up and walked with her to the hallway. “What’s up?”

“Today was going to be a day with hard physical training up there, but since you guys aren’t completely recovered from yesterday then I think individual coaching will be better for a couple of days.”

“That would be awesome; we were actually praying you were going to let us rest for a bit.” She told her with a smile.

“Okay, then tell them and meet me in the room from the other day in two hours.” She smiled one last time and walked down the corridor.

“Good news!” Ali said excitedly.

“What?”

“Cheer up, Dirk. She said individual coaching will be a thing for a couple of days while we recover.” Ali said with a smile.

“And why did she tell you?” Andrea asked with a smirk but Ali noticed the jealous undertone.

“Because my class will be in two hours.” Ali shrugged nonchalantly.

 

\--

 

Ali was feeling tired, she felt like the previous day had been the worst since she had joined the armed forces, and her body was still fighting the need to get sick and rest for a whole week straight. She walked back to her room, she sat on her bed and tried to remember everything she had learned with Ashlyn in their prior lesson, and with a proud smile she walked to her bathroom to get ready to go down early to practice with the materials Ashlyn had given her.

She walked down the corridors, descended three levels and found the small room where they had practiced, but it was locked. She tried to open it but guessed it would only give in with a code from a superior officer, such as Harris.

She walked back upstairs and decided to simply wait the hour that was left while resting a little bit, and tried to get to her room through the crowded corridors that got busier around that time. She walked down the hallways and walked in front of the room where they had met Ashlyn for the first time and smiled.

When she got to her room she sat on the bed and let her mind wander to the days where she would walk around the beach with her parents, laughing at the stories they told her of their younger days, and how much her life had changed in the past four years. She had felt like life was slipping through her fingers when they left her and she felt like she was getting back to her old self when she found a new family in the armed forces.

She rapidly shook the thoughts away and thought of training again. Ashlyn had told them that the prior day wouldn’t be of much used to the army, but to the soldiers, because it would teach them stuff about themselves. When Ali heard that she thought she was crazy, but in retrospective she realized just how true her words were: she had learned that even when her body was ready to give up, her mind would keep her going, that even if her legs were betraying her and shaking like jello, her mind would still work and find a way to resist.

That useless drill taught her that she was a fighter, and she was proud of it.

She then thought about Ashlyn, of how she had felt the day before when she visited her in her room and of how jealous she had felt when that other woman flirted with her. She couldn’t feel anything apart from respect for Ashlyn, it wasn’t something that was allowed to happen in her mind, but she still found it hard to believe that Ashlyn wanted to be friendly just because she was a concerned superior. And she had prepared her a sandwich that she had later delivered at her door.

She groaned in frustration and wished she was still at the base where she would be able to find some feminine company to wash her worries and problems away. She hoped she could just go back, get a drink or two and find a woman to let her eat her out in the bathroom stall of the improvised bar, or take her home to just fuck her at the door with two fingers and leave her panting for more when she would just kiss her lips and walk back to her bunk bed. And then Ashlyn's smile made it’s way to her mind, crawling back up from her subconscious.

She noticed that she still had half an hour to spare and decided to head down there and see if Ashlyn was anywhere to be found so they could start their lesson earlier, or at least so she could ask for someone to open up the door. She made her way slowly, taking her time and not rushing herself, all while she tried to convince herself that her hands were cold because she was getting sick and not because she was nervous for spending a few hours with Ashlyn in a closed room away from anyone else.

When she got there, she heard a sound coming from inside the room and tried the door again, and it opened. She peeked inside and her heart froze when she saw the dark brown hair from a woman flowing in the air while her arms were wrapped tightly around Ashlyn's shoulders.

“I’m so close, Ashlyn… keep going, don’t stop.” The woman moaned in Ashlyn's ear, while she had her forehead resting against her shoulder. Ali noticed the way her arm was moving furiously in and out of her, bringing her towards climax, and it was then when she realized she should just close the door and run back to her room.

“Come for me, come on. I need to feel you come.” Ashlyn said hotly while Ali’s mind thought of a escape route. Ali bit her lower lip when she realized her legs betrayed her when Ashlyn started whispering hot things in the woman’s ear, lifting her eyes to find Ali standing there with a shocked face and confused eyes right when the woman moaned loudly and crashed into a shivering mess.

Ali closed the door with Ashlyn's eyes still locked with hers and ran to her room. She then damned the exercise from the day before, because her legs betrayed her again while her mind found a way to keep going.

She learned that she was a mental warrior, but her body needed to learn to keep going and put up a fight.


	10. Emergency

Ali sat in silence in her room, trying to calm her racing heart. She was still trying to understand what just happened, why was Ashlyn fucking someone in the room she knew Ali was going to be heading into in just a few minutes. She contemplated it being a move on purpose to make sure Ali got the message that Ashlyn was ‘taken’, but then she realized why that would be true since she had never tried to overstep the professional boundary with her.

Not even five minutes later she heard a knock on her door and a twist in her gut: she felt scared and jealous, and the last thing she wanted to do was see Ashlyn's face at the moment. She contemplated remaining silent until the other person left, but then she heard a sigh and a soft voice coming from the other side, calling her name.

“Ali? Are you here?” Ashlyn's voice said.

“One moment.” Ali found herself saying. She shook her head and took a deep breath before making her way to the door.

“Hey…” Ashlyn said softly and looking down at the floor.

“Hi…”

“I uh… I wanted to apologize for that.” Ashlyn said, clearing her throat. “I was waiting for you and then she… she surprised me.”

“Hey, it’s okay, I was way too early and-”

“No, it was my fault and it shouldn’t have happened. I’m… can we talk inside?” she said when she noticed some soldiers walking around the hallways.

“Of course.” Ali nodded and took a step to the side.

“I’m really sorry for that, it was a really embarrassing situation and it shouldn’t have happened. I need you to know how embarrassed I am.” Ashlyn said and Ali looked at her confused.

“Why are you telling me all this?”

“Because… I am aware of how inappropriate it was and how disrespectful I was and-”

“Ashlyn, really; it’s fine.” Ali smiled gently.

“No, I just… damn.” She chuckled nervously and Ali noticed for the first time how awkward Ashlyn looked, how uncomfortable she was, and how her body language wasn’t her usual confident style.

“Ashlyn, are you okay?”

“I’m trying to say something but I’m not so good at it.” She mumbled and looked down, covering her face with her hands and rubbing them over it for a couple of seconds. “I should leave now, I’m sorry.”

“Hey, no, what did you want to say?” Ali asked curiously. “I promise I won’t tell anyone what I saw, don’t worry.”

“Forget it.” Ashlyn said with an uneasy smile. “Take some rest and if anyone ask how the lesson went just tell them you got sick and we had to call it off.” Ashlyn said with an all business smile and then left.

 

\--

 

A couple days passed and Ali didn’t see Ashlyn around. She got some individual coaching lessons with Kenton, or with one of the other soldiers that were always around with Ashlyn, but it wasn’t the same. She felt like something was missing, and that she was part of the cause after that encounter.

She noticed how the girl from the cafeteria, the one she had caught having sex with Ashlyn, wasn’t quite as cheerful as she was during previous days, and that she always seemed to be a second away from breaking down and cry. Ali felt bad and wondered if she was like that because something had happened to Ashlyn.

Just as Ali was going to talk to her friends about her concerns on where Ashlyn was at the moment, she entered the room with the President and Kenton on each side of her. They walked directly to the front of the room and soon were joined by the rest of the government leaders, making the room to fall into silence and expectation.

“Today we have to make an announcement that could change the course of this war from now and on.” Kenton said. “We have received reports that indicate a group of the rebels has penetrated our lines and are preparing an attack against this compound in the upcoming hours.”

“If this information results to be true, DC will have suffered a pretty big hit to the heart, given how important this base is for our government and communications.” Ashlyn said. “This hit could end us, depending on the details they have about our compound, but we will fight until the end.”

“Harris received this information two days ago and has worked hard to confirm them. Sadly, no spy or double agent will confirm our suspicions so easily and so we’re blind here.” The President said. “We will take a safe route then, and following Harris' advice, everyone will be moved to our shelters and checked for possible threats for our security.” He said and a loud alarm started ringing throughout the underground base.

“Everyone go back to your rooms, pack your belongings and start evacuating towards the lower levels.” Ashlyn said with a firm voice. "The special agents will check your bodies and belongings for possible weapons that could threaten our collective safety and the stability of our government."

“We are under alert for an attack here, this is not a drill.” Kenton said loudly. “Follow our instructions and go to our shelters. We are in an emergency state.”

“You are not allowed to take anything that isn’t necessary clothes or a blanket down to the shelter. Everyone will be provided with necessary stuff for a few days of stay down there.” Another leader said and Ali and her friends looked at each other before they headed out to their rooms to pick up their stuff.

 

\--

 

“Come with me.” Ashlyn said to Ali, Andrea and Dirk as soon as they came out of their rooms and started heading down. “You are a special team and will stay with me at all times unless I instruct you to do otherwise.” She said and guided them through the dense crowd.

 

 


	11. Attack

“You guys stay here.” Ashlyn said and pointed at two bunk beds in the far end of a large room that was quickly filling with people coming from all over the underground base. “You are three, so I’ll take the bunk you don’t want.” She said and dropped her stuff on one of the beds. “I’ll be back soon but be ready in case I ask you to come in.” she said and left them standing there.

“I’ll take the one on top!” Dirk said and threw his stuff easily on the top bed.

“I’ll take the other one.” Andrea said and winked at Ali, who looked at her confused for a second before sitting on the only free bottom bed. “Sorry you’re stuck with Harris down there.” Andrea whispered in her ear before sitting next to her.

“What do you mean?” Ali asked her with an uncomfortable chuckle.

“I saw her getting in your room the other day…” Andrea confessed and Ali looked down and blushed. “Is there anything between you two?” she asked softly and Ali looked at her as if she had two heads.

“No! What? No!” she shook her head. “She wanted to make sure I was doing fine and talk about individual coaching.” She mumbled the first lie that she could think of.

“Well, she doesn’t go to my room to talk about my individual coaching sessions… I just assumed; look, if there’s something going on with you two, you don’t have to tell me, but you can be sure you can count on me.” She smiled sincerely at her and patted her knee before climbing up to her bed.

 

\--

 

“Harris, you  need us now?” Dirk asked when they saw Ashlyn approaching them a whole day later.

“No, I’m just tired; I’ll try to sleep for a bit.” She shook her head and sat on the bed she assumed was hers due to her stuff still being there. “No one wanted the bottom bunk?”

“No, just Ali.” Dirk shrugged and focused back on the deteriorated old UNO cards he was holding.

“Oh, okay. Bottom bunks are underappreciated anyway.” She said simply and sat on the bed, facing away from the three. She took off her shoes and grabbed a blanket they received when they got to the shelter and laid down.

The friends continued playing, but Ali couldn’t help but stealing glances at Ashlyn and making sure everyone around them was keeping quiet so she could sleep. A few minutes after Ashlyn got in bed Ali heard a loud laughter coming from the bunks in front of theirs, and noticed how it quickly spread through the almost infinite rows of bunks and people.

“What’s going on?” Dirk asked amused and confused.

“I think someone just fell from that bunk.” Andrea responded with a chuckle and Ali looked at Ashlyn to make sure she was still asleep, but she saw her groggily sitting up and looking around her to try and find the source of the loud noises.

“What’s that?” Ashlyn asked and Ali shook her head.

“Someone fell from a bunk.”

“Oh… okay.” She yawned and covered her face with her hands. She sat up straight and started putting on her shoes again.

“What are you doing?” Ali asked her and walked towards her, leaving a smirking Andrea behind.

“I uhm… I gotta head back now.” Ashlyn said and got on her feet.

“You just slept for like ten minutes.” Ali frowned. “You’re exhausted, try to sleep a little longer and then try to eat something.” She said as she approached Ashlyn, who looked at her with a face that had some amusement and something else Ali couldn’t decide.

“I uh… okay.” Ashlyn nodded while trying to contain a smile and laid back down on the bed. “Just an hour or so.” She said as she set an alarm and Ali nodded.

“Okay.” She said and went to sit back on her bed, ignoring the looks she was getting from everyone around her, and especially Andrea.

 

\--

 

“Damn, I didn’t know I was so tired.” Ashlyn groaned as she sat up. She looked around and saw the lights were off and everyone seemed to be sleeping. Except for Ali.

“You looked exhausted.” She said softly and Ashlyn turned her face to see her in the darkness.

“I know, it’s just… I can’t spend so much time resting when we’re under attack… or threat of one.” She explained. “What are you doing?” she asked when she saw Ali getting up from her bed and start looking for something in her bag.

“Take this.” She said and handed her one of the packs of food they received when they entered the shelter. “I bet you haven’t eaten in forever.” She said and sat on the bed next to Ashlyn, who simply smiled and took the food from her hands.

“I think my last decent meal was yesterday’s breakfast.” She giggled and started eating. “This is like… frozen cat piss or something.” She said with disgust and Ali laughed when she saw her swallowing.

“It’s awful but it’s a mixture of proteins and vitamins we need.” She giggled.

“It doesn’t make it taste any better.” She shivered and finished the small package. “I’m gonna have to go brush my teeth after that.” She made another disgusted face and Ali smiled brightly at her; even in the bad illumination of the area, Ashlyn still managed to look like a beautiful woman.

“Well, you can take a moment to shower, too.” She covered her nose playfully and Ashlyn looked at her in mock offense.

“Oh, I see how it is, Krieger.” She nodded and got on her feet to look for a towel and some clean clothes. “I’ll be back in a minute.” She winked even though Ali could barely see her and made her way to the locker room style bathroom where there were plenty of showers with no divisions and a few stalls were the toilets were.

 

\--

 

“Ready. I smell good now.” Ashlyn jokingly said as she approached Ali.

“You do.” Ali giggled.

“Thank you for earlier, for not letting me go when I woke up.” Ashlyn said with a gentle look. “I sometimes need someone to give me directions or I’ll drown myself in work.” She smiled a little and Ali nodded and blushed a little.

“It’s okay, I just… you’ve kind of taken care of me and I wanted to give the favor back, I guess.” She shrugged and felt Ashlyn's gaze on her, burning a hole through her soul.

“Thank you.” Ashlyn simply  said and reached with a hand to gently caress Ali’s cheek, light like a feather touch and brief as a sigh. “I gotta go back.” She said and with one last smile she started walking back to the other side of the long room where the other government leaders were waiting for any lead on what to do next.

Ali, meanwhile, felt butterflies in her stomach and a tingling touch on her cheek where Ashlyn had touched her. She felt her face getting warm and a smile taking over her lips; she felt like an infatuated high school girl whose crush was giving her a lifeline of hope.

That was a sensation Ali missed, a sensation she had felt only twice in her life so many years ago. She had to shake her head and get back in bed to try and control the stupid grin on her lips and the wild blush on her cheeks.

 

\--

 

“I don’t think they’re gonna bomb us.” The President said. “If they were going to do it, it would’ve been done by now.” He reasoned.

“I strongly disagree with you.” Kenton said. “Sir, this is war. Just because we know they’re going to bring bombs to DC and attack our base, it doesn’t mean it’s gonna happen immediately.”

“I think you forgot a few ‘Sir’ in there, Kenton. You’re talking to the President of the U.S. here.” Another government leader said and he laughed, loudly.

“We don’t have time for that bullshit, John.” He said with a wide smile. “Here, in this shelter and in this base, this guy is Mr. Jonah Hamilton, the President of the United States, but for me he’s just the guy who dragged us into this mess with his stubbornness and stupid war strategies.”

“I didn’t drag you into this!” the President said loudly and annoyed.

“You did, Hamilton!” he said and got on his feet. “The only reason why I am here protecting your ass is because you’re the symbol of the federal republic, of the democracy we lived in. Do I think you deserve being called the President and being the most respected person in this whole compound? Oh hell no. But I defend you because you were elected by the same people we’re fighting for, the same men and women we’re trying to protect from tyrant idiots who think they can run a country better than a whole system that took so many years to perfect.”

“Everything okay in here?” Ashlyn asked as she entered the room and saw the tension in everyone’s faces and the bright smile on Kenton.

“Yes, I was just trying to explain to our well respected President why we must wait for the attack and not go back out.”

“You didn’t explain, Clark, you attacked me!” the President said. “Give me one good reason why we should stay in here after two days with no signs of a bomb or any other threat to our safety!”

“Harris investigated and-”

“I don’t care what she said, she recommended bringing us down here and now we’re showing weakness because of that!” the President insisted. “We’re looking weak to our own soldiers and-”

“Excuse me, sir, but you think that protecting the lives of the thousand soldiers we have in this compound alone is a sign of weakness?” Ashlyn asked in disbelief. “We’re preventing the death of many important people that work really hard to try and make sure we still have a nation to call home after all this war shit is over.”

“You didn’t have proof to say you’re sure this is happening, that we’re gonna be under attack, Harris.” Gore, the other leader said. “You said you believed it could happen.”

“I don’t know you, ladies and gentlemen, but when Harris suggests something as big as this is going to happen, she’s usually right. She hasn’t failed us before and I seriously doubt she’s gonna fail us now.” Carter, the second of three female leaders said. “I trust her information more than I trust Hamilton’s judgment on how to handle a war.”

“My guys got the information from rebel soldiers, they captured them and threatened to kill them if this information is false so they have no reason to lie with their lives on the line.” Ashlyn explained to the President. “I also made some digging with our only double agent there-” she said looking at Kenton, “-and he confirmed there was some strange movement around their base in Colorado but that they didn’t let on what’s gonna happen and he didn’t have access to enough information.”

“So we’re praying you’re right?” Gore said.

“No, we’re praying I’m wrong.” Ashlyn said annoyed. “You think this is a game, don’t you? Do you realize the kind of armament the rebels have? Do you realize that if they come here and decide to destroy us using bombs they’re doing it to end with everything in DC, not just Hamilton’s sad government and the leaders, but everything. They’re the kind of people who think if you’re not with them then you’re the enemy.” Ashlyn said loudly. “If they bring bombs and we’re up in the higher levels, we’re going to fucking die, Gore. There won’t be anything fun or pretty or tame about it. Now, you can go ahead and sit out there at the gate to enter the White House if you want and wait to see if they don’t come and then run to get on the first flight or shop out of here and to Europe, but if you’re gonna do that you’re gonna do it alone.”

“Who do you think you are, Harris?! You don’t have military training or any kind of knowledge in war-”

“And you do, and that’s admirable, Gore. But look at how well your methods were for Chicago.” She said and Kenton smiled at her. “War is about strategy, and a big part of that is adjusting to the opponents and the moves they put in front of you. We can’t continue serving cities and millions of people in silver platters for them to kill or start a government with. Don’t be so irresponsible.” She spat out angrily.

“Harris has more balls than you, Gore.” Kenton said. “She’s right, and I don’t know you but like Carter said, I trust Ashlyn's information more than I trust Hamilton’s view of war, or your own. I will not allow you to tell my men out there to go back up and pray for the best.”

“Then what, we stay here waiting?!” Hamilton asked in a defeated but angry tone.

“That’s exactly what we do.” Carter said. “We give a few days, and if Harris doesn’t get anything concrete in that period then we resume our normal routines and go back up.”

 

\--

 

“Why are you still awake?” Ashlyn asked when she walked back to her bunk the next night.

“I couldn’t sleep.” Ali smiled gently. “You look terrible.”

“I’m exhausted.” Ashlyn nodded and kneeled next to Ali’s bed, facing her. “Try to get some sleep.” She said softly and Ali smiled when she felt Ashlyn's cold fingers tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“You need to eat.” She reminded her with a smile and Ashlyn grimaced.

“I would rather not.” She responded playfully. “I’m gonna go shower and then we’ll see.” She said with a soft voice and didn’t move for a whole ten seconds before she started looking for more clean clothes and heading to the bathroom.

 

\--

 

“Still awake, huh?” Ashlyn smiled and sat on the floor next to Ali’s bed with her wet hair cascading over her shoulders. She reached in her bag and grabbed another package of food and started eating.

“I can’t sleep.” Ali repeated. “Can I ask you something?” she said hesitantly.

“Of course.” Ashlyn said and turned to her, resting her head against the wall.

“What did you do before war?”

“In the good old times?” Ashlyn asked with a sad smile and took a long moment to finish her food and respond. “I was a lawyer.” She said simply. “I worked with an office for the defense of Human Rights and equality in DC and tried to help with you know stuff like equality and laws promoting respect to every human being regardless of gender, sexual preference, religion or beliefs and all that.”

“Sounds really interesting.” Ali smiled.

“It really was, you know? I met many incredible people there and I heard so many amazing stories of people who escaped war in their home countries and from women who tried to do something to change the world.” She smiled sadly. “I loved working there, working with those wonderful people. I was one of those who thought you could make a difference, change the world, even if it was just you against everyone and everything else.”

“And how did you end up being part of the government?” Ali asked as she propped herself up on her elbow.

“Well, it was… weird, I just walked into the training grounds they were starting to conform in Maryland, you know? And I had like a week there and Kenton came to see us, the new cadets and soldiers and he was impressed with me I guess… he brought me here to this base and taught me a lot of stuff and I was like his assistant.” She chuckled and shook her head. “Then one day he was in a meeting with the President, things were pretty recent, it had been just a few weeks since I arrived here and a couple months since the start of war and the White House was still the center of power here.”

“Wow, you climbed up the ladder from the bottom like that?” Ali asked impressed.

“I did, I guess. I started monitoring communications and I managed to go out on a mission with Kenton and well, after that I became pretty good with information and important stuff for war; anyway, that day he had a meeting, I wasn’t there with him and I intercepted an important message from one of the communications I was monitoring and I went all the way to the President’s office and I managed to go through security and interrupted the meeting to deliver the message to him and then the President said what he was going to do and the three leaders then started debating on how to act and I just kind of said they were crazy and wrong and were going to fuck it up… the next day I was called into a meeting with the leaders, and the next, and the next… and now we’re here.” She shrugged and Ali looked at her with an open mouth. “What?”

“That is fucking awesome.” Ali said and Ashlyn chuckled. “And really badass.”

“Well, thank you.” She winked. “Now what about you?” she asked and Ali smiled brightly at her.

“I used to be a chef in one of the best restaurants in New York.” She responded shyly and Ashlyn looked at her confused and amused. “Why are you making that face?” she giggled.

“A chef is the best soldier in the academy in DC? I’m – I think I have the right to be surprised.” Ashlyn smiled.

“I was in charge of the whole kitchen, I had to make sure everyone was focused and we worked all on the same page, keep my sous chefs in order and organize the waiters… I used to be the leader for a small army of people.” She said with a small blush.

“That’s admirable, leading people and keeping your head in the kitchen and supervising everything that’s going on around you without burning the food or killing someone is damn admirable, Krieger.” Ashlyn nodded. “I’m impressed.”

“Well, too bad you never managed to see me in action.” Ali said with a sad smile. “The restaurant was famous in town for having the best steak.”

“Damn, I loved a good steak.” Ashlyn pouted and Ali giggled and stared at her. “And now I’m embarrassed I prepared you that stupid sandwich the other day.” She shook her head and covered her face with her hands.

“Hey, it was a good sandwich!” Ali responded playfully. “And it was a really sweet gesture, too.” She said softly and Ashlyn looked at her with gentle eyes.

“I’m glad it wasn’t as bad as this crap we have to eat here.” She smiled a little.

“If we had met, say in a coffee shop or something, what would’ve you done?” Ali asked and regretted it as soon as the words left her lips.

“I would’ve asked for your number without a doubt.” Ashlyn responded cheekily. “Or I would’ve tried to run away as soon as I could to not make an idiot out of myself.” She shrugged and Ali giggled.

“Where’s your confidence, Harris?” Ali teased her.

“I don’t know what that is when I’m in front of a beautiful woman.” She responded cheekily but she felt her cheeks blushing.

Right before Ali responded, they heard a loud thud and felt everything shaking.

“Harris! We’re under attack!” Kenton yelled from the door where some of the leaders were reunited.


	12. Power

“Okay, what was that?!” Ashlyn asked as she entered the room.

“We don’t know, probably a bomb.” Hamilton responded.

“You don’t say.” Ashlyn mumbled and walked to sit in front of her computer, one of the only ones available in the base, and started looking through the different layers of security that the underground compound had activated. “It was superficial and it only hit the White House.”

“Are they still around?” Kenton asked.

“Yes, I can’t imagine them letting us off the hook that easily. If they came all the way here, it was for blood.”

“What should we do?” Gore asked with a straight face.

“For now, we should stay quiet here, wait for them to leave.” Kenton said. “If we move, we give away our resources and positions.”

“We can’t let them just throw bombs over us! Especially not at the White House!” Hamilton yelled. “We’re being cowards.”

“Not again with that.” Kenton shook his head. “Don’t be a tool, Hamilton.”

“Kenton, don’t overstep your limits.” Gore reminded him with a strong voice.

“You people are clueless about strategy, defense, and war in general… how do you call yourselves part of the US armed forces if you can’t understand why we must remain quiet and wait it out before we make a move.” He responded.

“We’re being weak.” Hamilton said and pulled out his own communication device. “Carson, go at them with everything you have.” He said and Ashlyn and Kenton, along with the leaders that supported their ideas and plans, looked at him with mild panic.

“You can’t do that!” Ashlyn yelled. “You’ll put those pilots in danger!”

“ _Are you sure, sir?”_ Carson’s voice said.

“Do what I say!”

“Don’t be stupid! If you do that you give away the hangar’s position and our defensive lines will be even weaker!” Ashlyn said angrily, walking towards him and cornering him against the wall.

“Harris!” everyone yelled when she put her forearm against his throat and took the device from his hand.

“Let me go!” Hamilton tried to yell.

“You already got us into this deep shit we call a war where we’ve lost our families and hundreds of people. I will not allow you to be responsible for the death of the pilots and the rest of our people that are still protecting what’s left of DC.” She said in a strong, firm voice. “Carson, don’t let anyone out of your shelter. Stay safe and keep down your energy usage.” She instructed before throwing the device on the table.

“Harris, let him go.” Kenton said and she did as told.

“Control your guard dog, Clark.” Jameson, another leader, said.

“She’s not my guard dog, and I don’t control her.” He responded coldly. “And she just saved-”

“She saved nothing! You don’t know shit about war!” Hamilton yelled. “I was out there, I was part of the real war and I know what it is like; don’t you two idiots come here to tell me how to handle my country!”

“We let you run this country, control the rebels that wanted to overtake the government and you screwed it up, Jonah.” Carter said. “We need to start doing things differently or we’re gonna end up dead like all the brave Americans that have given their lives in so many wars before this one.” She spoke calmly. “You allowed Harris and Kenton to handle the Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, Wisconsin and Tennessee, and we have held strong, unlike with Illinois, Iowa, and Kansas, who were under Gore’s supervision.”

“And your point is?!” Gore jumped in with an angry tone.

“We’re losing valuable states to these thugs because you refuse to see how much war has changed, because you refuse to-” she stopped when they were shaken up by another bomb, “-because you refuse to see that there are traitors who apparently allowed them to fly across our very own dominated states to get here and bomb us!”

“What do you propose, woman?!” Hamilton yelled.

“That bomb got to the first hangar.” Ashlyn interrupted. “Not much damage but the entrance is blocked.”

“They’re attacking the Washington Monument?” Gore asked.

“Yes.” Ashlyn nodded.

“Thank goodness we’re all safe.” Calhoun, an older female leader of the government said. “I’m not one of your fans, Harris, but you have handled this war well enough to gain my trust and respect. I’m with Carter, and I think you and Kenton should be the ones in charge of our military operations, and also that Jonah, as smart as you are, you need to accept that your new role in this life is to be an ornament while we all around you clean your mess to try and keep our people having faith in the democracy.” She said and everyone around the room, except for Gore, Hamilton and Jameson, nodded in agreement.

“Why are they attacking the Monument, though?” Kenton asked.

“They probably assume we’re based there or something…” Ashlyn said absently as she looked through the reports the soldiers in the hangar sent her. “I have an idea.”

“What is it, Einstein?” Hamilton asked.

“I don’t know how this bomber skipped our whole line of aerial control but I have three of New York’s pilots on their way here; they’re gonna take them down and then we’ll probably have some time to see what went wrong.” She said and Kenton nodded.

“Good. Tell them to be careful. We could need the pilots if possible.”

“I’ll let them know.” She nodded.

 

  * -



 

“Harris, everything okay?” Andrea asked.

“Come with me.” She said and guided them towards a room in the back of the compound. There were at least ten soldiers working there, monitoring all kinds of radars and communication systems. “This is our crisis control room, only people with high skills in technology are allowed here.” She explained. “You three are part of my people, that’s why you’re allowed.”

“What can we do?” Dirk asked immediately.

“We need you to go through all our communications systems, listen to all the recordings, and find the mole that attracted these attacks.” She said and pointed to three empty spaces in the back of the room. “You can’t talk to anybody about this, and if you find something, no matter how small, you come to me.” She instructed right as another bomb hit the ground. “Where?” she asked to one of the soldiers that were already working there.

“Same location as the first bomb, Harris. Near the White House.” He said and continued to look through some files, looking for the proof Ashlyn asked for.

“Okay, go to work and don’t stop until you find anything.” She said and left the room.

 

  * -



 

“This is useless.” Andrea groaned after the third hour and barely made it through the one percent of one single record. “We’re never gonna find anything like this.”

“Shut up and keep listening.” Dirk said and focused again.

“Ali, how are you doing?”

“Bored, there’s nothing here.” She groaned. “We need to know where to start looking, we can’t just go through all this.”

“Should we ask Harris when she received the initial reports?” Dirk asked. “Maybe that way we could create a timeframe and avoid wasting valuable time looking for someone through months of recordings.”

“But we also have to take something into consideration, though.” Ali added. “Would this person we’re looking for really use our official channels of communication to leak information, knowing that we could get to them?”

“I’ll go talk to Harris.” Dirk nodded and walked out of the room and knocked on the next door, where he heard loud arguments and bangs on the table.

“What?!” Hamilton yelled and he opened the door slightly. “What do you want?!”

“I need to talk to Harris, sir.”

“What’s wrong, Dirk?” she rolled her eyes when Hamilton mumbled something about babysitting the new soldiers being too hard for her.

“Can we talk in private?”

“Okay.” She sighed and walked out with him. “What’s wrong?”

“We have been thinking and… are there any other ways of communication this person we’re looking for could’ve used? We, well, Krieger thought it’s kind of a dumb move to use the normal channels of communication-”

“I’ve taken care of those, they’re clean. That’s why I asked you to check the rest.” She explained.

“Is there anything in particular, a date-”

“Look, if you think it’s too much to do, then don’t do it. I will find a way to solve it.” She said annoyed.

“It’s not that! We’re just three and there’s-”

“Go back to playing with your UNO cards, Dirk. I’ll handle it.” She rolled her eyes and walked past him and back inside the room where she was before.

 

  * -



“It was a bad idea to talk to her.” He groaned when he entered the room and found Ali and Andrea still working on the recordings.

“Why?” Andrea chuckled.

“She said she had already cleared those other channels of communication and that if I thought it was too much work then I should go back to my bunk.” He said shaking his head and going back to work.

 

  * -



“Out, everyone.” Kenton said as he suddenly opened the door. “Now!” he yelled and all the soldiers left, including Dirk, Andrea and Ali.

“What was that?” Dirk asked, startled as they walked quietly back to their beds.

“That was an angry man.” Andrea groaned. “Goodnight.” She said as she climbed up to her bunk.

“Okay, I don’t know you but I’m exhausted and I want to sleep in case someone else decides to come and bomb us again.” Ali chuckled and took off her boots, sitting on her bed and sighing when she felt the bunk moving when Dirk climbed up to the top.

“Night, Kriegs.” He said and Ali laughed when she saw his boots hanging by the side of the bed.

 

  * -



“Hey.” Ali smiled a bit when she opened her eyes and saw Ashlyn sitting on the floor between their beds just finishing another package of food.

“Hey there, did I wake you?” she asked softly, minding that it was late at night and mostly everyone else was sleeping.

“No, I had been sleeping for a while.” Ali shook her head and yawned. “How’s everything going?” she asked and moved to sit on the floor next to her. She took a second to study Ashlyn's tired face, from the dark circles around her eyes, to the beautiful jaw line that gave the perfect strong compliment to her character and personality.

“Well, we expect no more bombs but we’re gonna stay here for another day just to make sure.”

“Oh so I won’t be able to sleep on this super comfortable bunk bed anymore?”

“Sorry but yes, you’re gonna have to go back up to your even more uncomfortable cot.” She laughed.

“Well, I’ll have to take it, I guess.” She fake pouted. When she looked up, she caught Ashlyn staring at her with a shy smile on her lips. The light was dim and poor but she could still see the bright spark in her hazel eyes, and she just smiled back. “What?”

“Nothing.” She shook her head and looked down, making Ali wonder if she was blushing.

“Tell me.” She said again, softly and shyly.

“Nothing, really.”

“I didn’t take you for a shy one, Harris.” Andrea said amused from the top bunk.

“What do you mean?” she shook her head amused but thankful for Andrea’s interruption.

“Well, I thought you would have the guts to at least tell her you like her but I guess I was wrong.” She shrugged and jumped off the bunk. “I’m slightly disappointed.” She winked playfully.

“Oh boy.” Ashlyn laughed and covered her face.

“What?”

“Nothing!” she chuckled again and Ali rolled her eyes.

“What? Are you surprised you’re easy to read or something?” Andrea said cheekily and Ashlyn looked at her while still covering her mouth and with a raised eyebrow while Ali simply stared at them.

“What makes you think you’re right, huh?” she responded and Andrea shrugged.

“Just saying. You’re kind of easy to read when you’re not being a big armed forces leader.”

“Maaybe you’re right.” She said with an embarrassed chuckle.

“What?” both Ali and Andrea responded.

“I said it.” She said cockily and with a smirk when she saw Ali was looking between embarrassed and relieved, with a small smile on her surprised face.

“Okay, then I’m gonna leave you two alone so you can talk and get to know each other better.” Andrea said with a smirk and a wink at Ashlyn as she walked and headed to the bathroom.

“That woman.” Ashlyn chuckled.

“Yeah.” Ali smiled at her.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah, of course… why?”

“Just asking; I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“You didn’t.”

“Then?”

“Nothing.” She said with a small smile.

“Okay… I’m gonna go take a shower, then.” She chuckled and got on her feet.

“I need to go to the bathroom… I mean, I need to… I-”

“Hey, it’s fine.” She smiled and helped her up. They walked quietly to the bathroom and found Andrea talking to one of the guards, smiling widely at something she said. “I thought she liked me.” Ashlyn shrugged and Ali laughed.

“She moved on, don’t take it personally.” Ali responded jokingly and went to one of the stalls, leaving Ashlyn behind her. After a moment she opened the door and came out, going to wash her hands and looking around to find Ashlyn. “Oh, I’m sorry.” She closed her eyes and shook her head when she looked at one of the showers and saw Ashlyn in all her naked glory folding her shirt before she started the water.

“It’s fine, don’t worry.” She laughed and started washing her hair. Ali looked around, wondering if she should leave or wait for Ashlyn, and she took a quick glance at the mirror, finding Ashlyn's backside facing her, with the water running over every curve of her toned body.

“I uh- I’m gonna go to the- I’m gonna go out.” She stammered and looked down before heading out before Ashlyn could respond.


End file.
